{Islam in Action [continued (3)]}[12th April 1991]

[Redbook9:84*][19910412:0905p]{Islam in Action [continued (3)]}[12th April 1991]

19910412:0905

[continued]

‘[Muhammad’s successor, Abū Bakr]** put an end to revelation with a combination of military force and coherent rhetoric. He defined withdrawal from Muhammad’s coalition as ingratitude to or denial of God (the concept of kufr); thus he gave seccession (riddah) cosmic significance as an act of apostasy punishable, according to God’s revealed messages to Muhammad, by death. He declared that the secessionists had become Muslims, and thus servants of God, by joining Muhammad; they were not free not to be Muslims, nor could they be Muslims, and thus loyal to God, under any leader whose legitimacy did not derive from Muhammad. Finally, he declared Muhammad to be the last prophet God would send, releying on a reference to Muhammad in one of the revealed messages as “khatm al-anbīyā” (“Seal of the Prophets”). In his ability to interpret the events of his reign from the perspective of Islam, Abū Bakr demonstrated the power of the new conceptual vocabulary Muhammad had introduced.’

***

*→[arrowed as continuing from ms p85]

**[Square brackets per ms]

***– ibid [Encyclopaedia Britannica 22:] 108

[continued]

[PostedBlogger11072024]